New Zealand Rabbits

We raise New Zealand rabbits for meat production. We have breeding pairs of New Zealand White, New Zealand Red, New Zealand Black, Broken New Zealand Red, and Broken New Zealand black rabbits. The focus of our breeding program is to raise vigorous rabbits with strong shoulders, compact bodies, gentle dispositions and good mothering instincts. The color varieties are just for fun! We do sell dressed rabbits fresh off the farm as well as breeding stock New Zealands. The local demand for good breeding stock has inspired us to join ARBA in order to learn more about "The Standard of Perfection" in rabbit breeding. We have also discovered that people crave the opportunity to have hands-on learning before venturing in to the business of raising rabbits for food. Sleepy Creek Farm is now offering "Meat Rabbit 101" seminars where participants can visit the rabbitry and learn everything you never thought you needed to know about raising meat rabbits.

Breeding Stock Available

Visit "The Nestbox" page for available rabbits and litters. We plan to add another page that features our herd sires and dams. Use our contact box on the home page for inquiries about rabbit or meat sales.

How can we eat Cute Little Bunny Rabbits?

Because rabbit meat is delicious! Of course, nobody enjoys butchering day - it is a humbling experience to be the one responsible for sending a living animal across the Rainbow Bridge. That said, rabbits were designed by God and Nature to be at the bottom of the food chain, and they can be quickly and humanely dispatched via cervical dislocation. They are also equipped with the ability to release endorphins when squeezed - before butchering, we employ the squeeze-hold method to reduce anxiety. Rabbit meat is lean, dense in protein, and similar in flavor and texture to turkey breast.

The Nest Box

The joy of raising meat rabbits is in having a constant supply of baby bunnies! We have 4 to 6 litters of kits a month and multiple 'growout pens' where the rabbits can develop from weanlings to butcher age (10 to 12 weeks). We like to pick out the best of each litter and offer them for sale as breeding stock. Rabbits fit nicely into the suburban back yard and can be a rewarding, educational experience for the whole family. If you are interested in New Zealand rabbits, use the contact box on our home page to send a message.

Rabbit Housing

We build quality cages for our rabbits at Sleepy Creek Farm. Our cage designs have evolved over time to meet our needs. We like our rabbits to have room to stretch their legs but also have those times when the rabbitry is at maximum capacity and cage space becomes premium. Our primary cage design is a 5' x 2' x 20" unit with a divider in the middle, which allows the cage to remain 'open' as one large unit or to be divided into two 30" x 24" x 20" single units. This design can be set up on a stand, hung from overhead supports, or incorporated into a double or triple stacked "Rabbit Factory".

Growout Pens

Our most poplar growout pen is a 4'x 2' x 2' hanging cage with a ramp that leads to a second level set at 14" height. The weanlings love racing up and down between the levels and the cage can comfortably accommodate 6 to 10 rabbits from weanling age to butcher size. They like to sleep 'upstairs', the low ceiling on the second level gives them a sense of security. The ramp helps develop good, meaty hindquarters and most of all allows natural movement.